As he dropped his daughter off at the University of Miami, whose football program is embroiled in controversy over alleged illegal payments to student-athletes, Magic coach Stan Van Gundy sounded off on what he believes is an illogical and unfair collegiate athletic system.

“The system is set up for everybody but the kids while pretending to be about the kids,” Van Gundy told the Miami Herald. “Athletics and education should be separate. Colleges shouldn’t be farm systems. It doesn’t make any logical sense. But the schools don’t want to be blatantly in the situation of being professional sports even though they already are professional sports. They just want to disguise it, so they hide behind education. But, really, all you want is enough of your athletes to graduate so it looks like that’s what you care about. Anyone around sports knows it is all a bunch of bull (expletive).

Stan Van Gundy thinks college athletes should be paid. (AP photo)

“I am not calling college coaches or administrators hypocrites," he added. "I believe that, in general, they care about the kids and education. But the system is wrong. Being a farm system creates problems that are beyond the control of even the best and most well-meaning administrators of which (UM’s) Donna Shalala would be at the top of my list.”

Van Gundy’s solution: pay the players – and be open about doing it.

“Let the schools decide whom they enroll and how — no entrance or eligibility requirements, how much the boosters want to pay them and whether or not they go to class,” he told the Herald. “There are two rules. You play only four seasons, and the upper age limit is 25. No other rules. Players who are paid must declare their income and pay taxes on it. If they don’t and get caught, then they have to deal with the IRS and instead of giving back the Heisman they risk going to jail. This drops the myth about amateurism and education. It allows players to get paid but puts it out in the open. Now people can stop hiding behind their idealism about the purity of college athletics and let you know what the school and alumni truly value.”

Van Gundy said the NCAA is fighting an unwinnable war against situations like the one that is occurring at Miami.